Pashburg's Store ~ Miner Street, Yreka

Gone but not forgotten...

Adjacent is a photo of the South side of Miner Street, Yreka circa 1918. The two story building on the far right edge of the image with the three windows on the second story is the former Pashburg Store. The building is long gone and likely forgotten or unknown by many as this building sat on a portion of what is now Fourth Street and Miner.

John Pashburg was a German immigrant who came to Yreka soon after gold was discovered. For many years John operated a tobacco shop on this site ~ the building was erected sometime between 1856 and 1862. It is reported in old news articles and historical journals that John Pashburg lost his inventory and his building during the great fire of 1871. It is not clear to this author if the building was completely rebuilt or rennovated after the fire. The earliest photos of this building that this author has found shows the building to be a single story, it is unkown exactly when the second story was added. Originally living quarters for his family were in the rear of the building. The store operated as a tobacco shop for many years but at some point expanded to groceries and miscellaneous items.

An article appears in an 1897 newspaper in Yreka that states "John Pashburg...has contracted for the construction of a second story on his building, to be of corrugated iron. It will be extended back 40 feet, with an entrance on Third street an elevator at Miner street entrance to lower story. The work will be commenced next Monday." The building was added on to several times on both the lower and upper levels. Eventually a small addition on the side (that jutted further into Fourth Street) that once served as the local stage office and at another time a saloon, was added and that portion appears to have been rented out to other proprietors. Even though the article appears in an 1897 newspaper, there are photos of the building from what is reported to be the 1901 snow storm and it appears to still be a single story. The documentation for the various changes appear to be elusive.


It is a curious set of events about this plot of land the building sat on. In 1862 the City of Yreka sued the original owner a J. B. Rosborough for the "recovery of about one half of the original Fourth Street, between Miner and Center Street" according to a excellent work produced by Robert Archie Noonan in 1976 titled Yreka's West Miner Street. The building and business was in the "middle of the street" until 1931 when the building was razed to widen Fourth Street.


For a few years the top portion of this building sat on Fourth Street ~ and it can be viewed in our Images of America book, Yreka on page 45. Looking at the building located at 311 Miner Street, today operating as the Edward Jones Investment Representative office, the business in the rear of the building (currently a interesting clock shop), one can view the old metal siding on the exterior of the building. It has been reported that this metal exterior once faced a portion of the Pashburg building.

John Pashburg worked and lived in Yreka from 1854 until his death in 1910. He is listed as one of the pioneer merchant's. Upon his death his son and son-in-law inherited his business. He had a total of nine children with six living to adulthood. His wife was Mary Louise Fiock, and they were married in 1867.

Copyright: Claudia A. East, 2008